{
  "section": "4735",
  "code": "California Civil Code",
  "law_code": "CIV",
  "citation": "California Civil Code § 4735",
  "heading": "Low Water-Using Plants and Water-Efficient Landscaping",
  "heading_is_editorial": true,
  "effective": "2015-10-11",
  "amended_by": "Amended by Stats. 2015, Ch. 780, Sec. 2.5. (AB 786) Effective October 11, 2015.",
  "official_credit_line": "Amended by Stats. 2015, Ch. 780, Sec. 2.5. (AB 786) Effective October 11, 2015.",
  "official_url": "https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=4735.",
  "page_url": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought",
  "pending_amendment": null,
  "version_history": [],
  "verified": "two sources agree",
  "verification_note": "Text taken verbatim from the Legislative Counsel of California official code database and checked word for word against an independent publisher.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "url": "https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zip",
      "accessed": "2026-10-11",
      "name": "leginfo (Legislative Counsel official bulk code database, LAW_SECTION_TBL)",
      "note": "Authoritative. Retrieved with tools/fetch.py, which reads the archive's central directory by HTTP range request and fetches only this section's member. The leginfo.legislature.ca.gov HTML page sits behind a bot challenge; this is the same database that backs it."
    },
    {
      "url": "https://california.public.law/codes/civil_code_section_4735",
      "accessed": "2026-10-11",
      "name": "California Public Law (Public.Law)",
      "note": "Independent publisher, used to check the text word for word.",
      "edition": "2025"
    }
  ],
  "subdivisions": [
    {
      "id": "a",
      "label": "(a)",
      "text": "Notwithstanding any other law, a provision of the governing documents or architectural or landscaping guidelines or policies shall be void and unenforceable if it does any of the following:",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a"
    },
    {
      "id": "a-1",
      "label": "(a)(1)",
      "text": "Prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of prohibiting, the use of low water-using plants as a group or as a replacement of existing turf.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a-1"
    },
    {
      "id": "a-2",
      "label": "(a)(2)",
      "text": "Prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of prohibiting, the use of artificial turf or any other synthetic surface that resembles grass.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a-2"
    },
    {
      "id": "a-3",
      "label": "(a)(3)",
      "text": "Has the effect of prohibiting or restricting compliance with either of the following:",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a-3"
    },
    {
      "id": "a-3-A",
      "label": "(a)(3)(A)",
      "text": "A water-efficient landscape ordinance adopted or in effect pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 65595 of the Government Code.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a-3-A"
    },
    {
      "id": "a-3-B",
      "label": "(a)(3)(B)",
      "text": "Any regulation or restriction on the use of water adopted pursuant to Section 353 or 375 of the Water Code.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-a-3-B"
    },
    {
      "id": "b",
      "label": "(b)",
      "text": "This section shall not prohibit an association from applying landscaping rules established in the governing documents, to the extent the rules fully conform with subdivision (a).",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-b"
    },
    {
      "id": "c",
      "label": "(c)",
      "text": "Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, except as provided in subdivision (d), an association shall not impose a fine or assessment against an owner of a separate interest for reducing or eliminating the watering of vegetation or lawns during any period for which either of the following have occurred:",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-c"
    },
    {
      "id": "c-1",
      "label": "(c)(1)",
      "text": "The Governor has declared a state of emergency due to drought pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 8558 of the Government Code.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-c-1"
    },
    {
      "id": "c-2",
      "label": "(c)(2)",
      "text": "A local government has declared a local emergency due to drought pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 8558 of the Government Code.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-c-2"
    },
    {
      "id": "d",
      "label": "(d)",
      "text": "Subdivision (c) shall not apply to an owner of a separate interest that, prior to the imposition of a fine or assessment described in subdivision (c), receives recycled water, as defined in Section 13050 of the Water Code, from a retail water supplier, as defined in Section 13575 of the Water Code, and fails to use that recycled water for landscaping irrigation.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-d"
    },
    {
      "id": "e",
      "label": "(e)",
      "text": "An owner of a separate interest upon which water-efficient landscaping measures have been installed in response to a declaration of a state of emergency described in subdivision (c) shall not be required to reverse or remove the water-efficient landscaping measures upon the conclusion of the state of emergency.",
      "anchor": "https://quoroom.org/law/drought#s4735-e"
    }
  ]
}